HP LaserJet 2550L Color Laser Printer

Rating:
Summary: Look Carefully...No Paper tray
Review: I bought one of these and packed it up to return tonight. There is no paper tray. The only way to feed paper is by opening the front door and sticking in sheets of paper. Then they hang out the front. The paper tray is an option that no one has in stock. I am going to swap for a 2550N. It comes with the tray and is supposed to be networkable.

Bob

Rating:
Summary: Have to replace color cartridges too often
Review: I have had this printer for about 3 months now and have already had to buy a $175 drum and countless toner cartridges. And I don't print anywhere near the maximum output of 30,000 pages per month. I might do 2500 a month. Yes the printer is cheap and prints high quality, but it isn't worth all the extra costs associated with it. And it is very slow if any type of complex document is sent to the printer, VERY SLOW. To upgrade the memory from HP is $500. If I had it to do over I would not have chosen this printer.

Rating:
Summary: Awsome Color Laser Printer at an Awsome Price!
Review: If you're like me, then you were blinded by the idea of a nice color laser printer for less then $500! Sure, these days you could go black and white for less then $150, even as low as $99. Is the color worth it? In my opinion: YES!

This printer, of all the color lasers, is the sleekest and most compact. Right off the bat, you will try and try to open up the paper tray at the bottom of the device, only to realize that it doesn't open. So where does the paper go? Well, that's the main negative...a part of the front panel opens up and the paper just hangs there much like the back of a bubble jet printer. But in this case, it completely ruins the nice look of the machine, and opens up for dust to accumulate. But for an additional $150-$300, you can buy a 250-850 page tray and this problem will be solved. This is an annoying thing, but I guess it is the price you pay for the price you pay. If you want it cheap, there has to be comprimises.

Output is AMAZING! Text is kickass, graphics are unbelievable, and photos are better then expected from a color laser. THIS IS NOT A PHOTO PRINTER, so dont buy it expecting great photo prints. If you want Kodak prints, buy a photo printer. If you want lots of quick color printouts at low cost, buy the 2550L.

Otherwise, I have no complaints. This thing is fast, cheap, and output is superior. And for god sake it is only $499!!! For that price, it's almost like, you dont have the right to complain!

Color output is off, like pinks instead of purples and yellows instead of orange. Tinker with the controls and you can match the color on your screen.

Simply: Get this, it's sweet.

-Brad

Rating:
Summary: Very nice color laser printer at a reasonable price.
Review: It's October 2004 and I've had my 2550L for 3 months now. Overall I'm very satisfied with the product. I have it plugged into my USB 2.0 port and it prints quickly. Also the quality of the text and pictures are good. I selected it because of it's size, USB 2.0 compatible and price. It was one of the least expensive color laser printers on the market and one of the smallest. It really is quite amazing how HP has figured out how to put all four color cartridges in such a compact package.

I print mostly black and white but wanted the option of color without the smearing ink of an ink jet printer. (I also don't like ink jets because you have to clean the heads and replace the cartridges too often.) This printer prints black and white faster and color a little slower and that was just right for my needs.

I've owned Epson, Brother, and Panasonic printers before. This is my first HP and I really do notice a difference in the quality of the build. I would definitely buy a HP printer again.

Why 4 stars instead of 5? Well this model doesn't come with the paper tray that mounts to the bottom. I didn't think it would bother me but it did. So I wound up buying the paper tray seperate. I should have bought one of the other 2550s that included it to start with because it was tough to locate the paper tray option and buy it on its own. It also cost me more all together vs buying a higher end 2550 that came with it already.

One thing that I didn't read in the other reviews that I would have liked to have known is that the printer cycles periodically. It intially scared my wife and I in the middle of the night because we heard noises in our home that we had never heard before. It was the printer cycling. While it is relatively noisy I don't think it would have stopped me from buying it, but I would have liked to have known in advance.